August 11, 2026: Artificial intelligence has encroached upon every aspect of people’s daily lives; health and wellness is no exception. While it can provide numerous benefits, including the ability to access straightforward medical advice without an appointment quickly, AI is far too prone to mistakes to be fully trusted with your health. Here are five things you should keep in mind when using AI to self-diagnose:
August 10, 2026: The numbers are staggering. The nation is facing the largest cyclospora outbreak in U.S. history, with nearly 23,000 reported (over 10,400 laboratory-confirmed) cases since May 1, 2026, tied to contaminated shredded iceberg lettuce imported from central Mexico. Now traced to 47 states, the outbreak is hitting the Midwest and South hardest, with Michigan, Ohio, and Missouri reporting the largest number of infections.
August 6, 2026: Washington, DC – The National Consumers League (NCL) is calling for the Trump administration to address a widening generational gap in consumer financial resilience, as highlighted by the July 2026 Financial Resilience Index (FRI).Consumers are struggling to keep up with the cost of groceries, medical bills, gas, and other household expenses. Gas prices have risen by an average of 81 cents per gallon compared to this time last year. Grocery prices have risen by 33% since 2019, the highest jump in over half a century, while over 100 million Americans are facing some form of medical debt. As a result, only 61% of Gen Zers reported feeling in control of their day-to-day finances, 28 points lower than their Baby Boomer counterparts.
August 6, 2026: As a kid, I would count down the days until I was an adult. I yearned for freedoms like staying up late and being able to drive. Nothing in my imagination rivaled the maturity, respect, and independence that the milestone promised. Now, as a college student, I realize that the flagship freedoms of adulthood are, in fact, not free.
July 29, 2026: Washington, DC – The National Consumers League, Consumer Federation of America, and 29 other stakeholders sent a letter to Majority Leader John Thune and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer urging Senators to oppose the confirmation of Brien Lorenze and Karen Sessions to serve as commissioners of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Last week, the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee advanced the nominations with a 15 yeas to 13 nays party-line vote. The Senate may consider the nominations as early as this week.
July 24, 2026: Washington, DC – At a time when a Food and Drug Administration advisory committee recommends loosening restrictions on some widely promoted research-grade peptides, the National Consumers League is going public about the serious health consequences of acquiring and self-injecting peptides that have not been proven through completed clinical trials to be safe and are prohibited for human use in Canada, Australia, the European Union, and by the World Anti-Doping Agency.
July 22, 2026: Washington, DC – Today, John D. Breyault, Vice President of Public Policy, Telecommunications, and Fraud at the National Consumers League (NCL), testified before the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade. The hearing, titled “Legislative Proposals to Strengthen Consumer Protection in a Changing Marketplace,” addressed key legislation impacting consumer agency authority, marketplace transparency, and fraud prevention.
July 21, 2026: Washington, DC – The National Consumers League, Consumer Federation of America, and 29 other stakeholders sent a letter to members of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation opposing the confirmation of Brien Lorenze and Karen Sessions to serve as commissioners of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). The committee is scheduled to vote on the nominations tomorrow.
July 20, 2026: Washington, DC – The National Consumers League, alongside the Campaign for Fairer Gambling, the National Council on Problem Gambling, the Public Health Advocacy Institute, and Truth in Advertising, Inc. (TINA.org), today filed a petition calling on the Federal Trade Commission to require wagering apps to provide consumers better control over the notifications they receive.
July 7, 2026: Between 9.9 and 14.9 million—the number of people that could become uninsured as a result of the cuts and work requirements imposed by H.R.1, commonly known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The work of the National Consumers League is making a difference in people’s lives across the country. Meet some of the consumers touched by our programs.
Read about NCL’s impact
Paige, 55, a Nashville wife and mother of two, answered an employment ad for secret shoppers. Before sending payment to the scammers, she reached out to NCL.
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A grease fire flared up in Decklan’s kitchen. As his family scrambled and panicked, fearing that the whole house might erupt in flames, Decklan remained calm. He hurried over to the pantry, grabbed some baking soda, and dumped it on the fire quickly extinguishing the blaze.
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Cincinnati resident Charles, 45, lost his computer business — and health insurance— during a time of economic downturn. A diabetic, Charles was now unable to afford his medication. He stopped taking it which made him seriously ill and put his life at risk.
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Jeremy is a fast-food worker who has been employed at a number of Chipotle restaurants in New York City. When he was just 20 years old, he took part in an NCL research project that revealed that management practices within the fast food chain were putting workers—and food safety for customers—at risk.
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By Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director
While the COVID-19 pandemic has led to hardship for all Americans, it is clear that people of color have been disproportionately burdened. Across the health care continuum, addressing this disparity has become part of the broader conversation about the history of systemic racism and the underlying social determinants of health that negatively affect the mental, physical, and economic health of individuals and entire communities.
The pandemic has underscored persistent health disparities, and there is growing recognition that representation in research and clinical trials can have a profound impact on health outcomes. A lack of representation from racially and ethnically diverse groups in research and clinical trials have typically led to gaps in data, missing the opportunity to assess the full impact of various treatments and drugs across a range of populations. The collection and use of real-world research and data to inform the potential use, risks, and benefits of medical products and treatments can ultimately lead to better health outcomes, particularly for those who have been underrepresented in the past.
Existing efforts to improve inclusion
Efforts to expand diversity and representation in medical research are underway in Congress. Policymakers are encouraging the incorporation of Real World Evidence (RWE) in drug development through the recent Cures 2.0 draft legislation released by Reps. Diana Degette (D-CO-1) and Fred Upton (D-MI-6). While the status quo limits us from effectively reaching underserved populations, the proposed legislation would allow studies that include RWE for some drugs after they have been approved. At the heart of this issue is a growing appreciation that the same therapy can affect different populations in different ways, which is why Cures 2.0 supports collecting data that more accurately reflects the unique experiences and needs of patients across diverse populations.
Recognizing the potential for RWE in maternal health
The lack of representative research in the field of maternal health is undeniable, and its implications are staggering. The dismal state of maternal care in the United States reflects how our health care system has failed women of color, including by not adequately studying treatment options to prevent maternal morbidity and mortality. The need for RWE is clear when you consider the persistent disparities in health outcomes that plague minority communities.
Preterm birth and its disproportionate impact on women of color is a stark illustration of the need to make progress on representative research in maternal health. Preterm birth is the second-largest contributor to infant death in America today. Despite the tremendous physical, emotional, and financial toll that preterm birth continues to take on our country — disproportionately so on women and families of color — not enough therapeutic tools currently exist to prevent it.
Today, “17P,” the only FDA-approved treatment to help reduce the likelihood of spontaneous, recurrent preterm birth in the United States is at-risk of being withdrawn from the market in all its forms, including the branded product and five generic versions. Unfortunately there is conflicting evidence from two different clinical trials, one representative of a diverse U.S. population and another studied in a largely white population in Europe. It’s not a straightforward comparison. If 17P is withdrawn, the women most affected by preterm birth, predominantly women of color, would be left without an FDA-approved treatment option.
The FDA is considering the path forward, including additional data collection through leveraging RWE from past patient use. The success of the first (approval) trial for 17P in the impacted communities signals the importance of RWE. Continued access to 17P is, at its core, a matter of health equity. Black women must not yet again be left vulnerable to a system that historically has overlooked them.
